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Josh Kurz
Apr 232 min read
Predicting the Peak: Spring Runoff 2024!
The 2024 meltdown is well underway! The snowpack at the Upper San Juan Snotel site (USJSS) peaked 3 days early on April 11th with 25.8...
194 views3 comments
Josh Kurz
Oct 3, 20232 min read
Invitation to my Water Talk: 6 PM on October 5th at the Ruby Sisson Library
When you turn on a faucet in your home, where does the water come from? Since we live in the headwaters of the San Juan River, we can see...
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Josh Kurz
Sep 2, 20234 min read
A Tribute to John Fielder (1950 - 2023)
Every kid needs a hero or two and John Fielder, Colorado's premier nature photographer, was one of mine. As a kid, I'd pour over his...
238 views6 comments
Josh Kurz
May 7, 20233 min read
Predicting the Peak: Spring Runoff 2023
As I enter my 25th year of living in the Southern San Juans, I’ve witnessed events this spring that I’ve never seen before! For example,...
488 views1 comment
Josh Kurz
Mar 24, 20232 min read
Winning Winter: 2019 vs 2023
How does our current snowpack stack up to the epic winter of 2018-2019? In the 23 years that I’ve shoveled snow in Pagosa, I can’t...
289 views2 comments
Josh Kurz
May 7, 20223 min read
Spring Runoff 2022
Spring runoff on the San Juan River started alarmingly fast with an early spike of 1670 cfs on 4/22! Since that spike was higher than...
390 views0 comments
Josh Kurz
Mar 27, 20225 min read
A Little Dirt Never Hurt...Right?
A classic Colorado childhood isn't complete without snacking on snowballs and catching scrumptious snowflakes on the tongue. One of my...
195 views1 comment
Josh Kurz
May 4, 20213 min read
Signs in the Snow
Like constellations in the night sky, some see shapes in the snow and claim that they can foretell the future. From October till May,...
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Josh Kurz
Apr 17, 20212 min read
Predict the Peak: Spring Runoff 2021
It’s time for my annual San Juan River spring runoff prediction! The 2021 water year is half over and spring runoff on the San Juan...
301 views0 comments
Josh Kurz
Oct 31, 20206 min read
The Sentinel of the San Juans
I stared through The Window, the legendary 600-foot notch in the Rio Grande Pyramid’s southern flank. I’d seen The Window from the...
398 views3 comments
Josh Kurz
Aug 22, 20206 min read
Hurricanes in Colorado?
On October 5th, 1911, the San Juan River experienced the highest and most devastating flood on record. Since the flood washed out every...
719 views2 comments
Josh Kurz
Aug 11, 20204 min read
The Highest Point in Archuleta County: A 20-mile Pilgrimage
If you're a local, there’s a good chance that you’ve seen the highest point in Archuleta County but didn’t know it. Unlike the familiar...
556 views1 comment
Josh Kurz
Jul 22, 20204 min read
Scaling Squaretop Mountain
When I see a conspicuous mountain on the skyline, I crave to view the world from its perspective and long for the awaiting adventure. In...
630 views1 comment
Josh Kurz
Jul 16, 20202 min read
Streamflow and Precipitation Update: July 2020
It may surprise you to know that the 2020 spring runoff on the San Juan River was a top-five event! While the 2019 spring runoff was the...
276 views0 comments
Josh Kurz
Apr 25, 20202 min read
2020 Spring Runoff Prediction
Wondering when and how much streamflow to expect in the San Juan River during the 2020 spring runoff? And how will the 2020 spring...
101 views0 comments
Josh Kurz
Mar 6, 20203 min read
Snowpack Update and Outlook: March 2020
Rather than climbing snowbanks onto the Pagosa Springs High School roof or jumping out of the second-story classroom windows into the...
88 views0 comments
Josh Kurz
Feb 8, 20202 min read
Current Snowpack Situation
Wondering how the snowpack in the Southern San Juan Mountains stacks up to the last year and the historic norm? January is usually the...
326 views2 comments
Josh Kurz
Jan 6, 20202 min read
January 2020 Snowpack Update: Southern San Juan Mountains
How does the 2020 snowpack stack up to last year and to the historic norm? Snow-wise, 2019 is a tough act to follow, but I was surprised...
97 views0 comments
Josh Kurz
Dec 8, 20195 min read
Snowshoe...cross country ski...skate ski...so many choices!
Winter in the mountains...for some, a snow-covered landscape brings chills and dread, for others, it brings excitement and new...
572 views0 comments
Josh Kurz
Sep 14, 20192 min read
Does Early September Seem Hotter Than Normal?
That's the question I pondered during the 1st week of September as I sweat through my afternoon science lessons. Our mountain high...
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